


pin by pin

by owlwyngwastaken



Category: Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, and this was the something soft i got, y'all i just wanted to write something soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-04
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-08-17 08:00:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16512383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/owlwyngwastaken/pseuds/owlwyngwastaken
Summary: she hadn't meant to leave the ball for long... but she can't say she regrets it now.





	pin by pin

"My lord, I-"

Rinea cuts herself off, already thankful for the cover granted by the Rigelian wind for the redness staining her cheeks. Lord Berkut stands in front of her, and his gaze lands not on herself, but instead on the stone just before her - lands on the flowers she had picked from the garden. She averts her own gaze to stare down at her hands.

Ah.

She has some dirt under her nails. Her blush only deepens. Caught red-handed, indeed.

"I must apologize," she says finally, when the silence grows too awkward for her to bear. "For my departure from the ball. It's most..." Her brain fails her for a second, and she picks at her nails, in a foolish attempt to clean them. "Well. It's... It's just rude, I suppose, for me to abandon you in such a way." She'd wince at her word choice if she didn't feel his gaze land upon her. She stares up at him. "I didn't mean to do so, Lord Berkut. Please forgive me"

Rinea rests her hands on top of her skirt, trying to be every part of the picturesque noble girl she's dolled up to be. Berkut seems a bit taken aback before his expression returns to one much more familiar to her. "It's quite alright, my lady... There's no need to ask for my forgiveness." Her jaw drops slightly, and a hand goes to hide it near automatically. 

"But, Lord Berk-"

He cuts her off with a wave of his hand. She bites her lip. "I noticed you looked quite uncomfortable among all those people... I can only assume you left due to that?" He says, his eyebrows raised ever so slightly in inquiry. 

Rinea just blinks owlishly at him. A few seconds pass, and the sounds of the party inside bleed out to the quiet garden. No sound escapes her. His lips purse before he speaks again. "Was I wrong, Rinea?" She blinks again, before shaking her head rapidly. "No, no, my lord," she replies, trying not to wince at the sting from such quick movements.

(So tenderheaded, she thinks, for her head to ache like this from a bun.)

"I hadn't realized my discomfort was so obvious..." She honestly thought she had been hiding it a bit better... or she had simply hoped she'd been hiding it better. She attempts a smile. 

"My apologies." 

"As I've said, my lady, it's quite alright." His cheeks redden slightly as he continues on, tilting his gaze away, just enough to not make such direct eye contact. “If you wish to spend the rest of the ball in this garden, I’d be content to pass the time with you here."

If the blush on her cheeks could get any darker... She smiles, a bit more genuinely now.   
  
"Well... thank you, my lord."

He nods, faint smile at the corners of his lips. Silence falls between them again as they turn to face the flowers, but it’s not so uncomfortable… In fact, it’s rather warm, making her feel-

"Do you like it here?"

Rinea jumps out of her musings and whips her head to look at him, wincing afterwards. He looks a little shocked.

"Do.. you not? You look-"

"No, I do!" She pauses, shocked at her own impudence. "It's just... my... hair... is all."

Berkut stares at her, eyebrows furrowed before he seems to reach a conclusion. "Ah... I see... Come here, please, my lady." She tilts her head, but does as he asks, stepping closer. A thousand questions die in her throat as he steps behind her, and begins to take the pins out of her hair.

Pin by pin, a warrior's hands delicately release her hair from the pins’ painful grip. A warrior's calloused fingers tenderly run through blue locks, and Rinea lets out a soft sigh of relief. "Thank you..." she says as he pulls his hands away, and she takes a minute to massage her aching scalp. 

"It's not a problem." The red in his cheeks is more obvious now... she can’t help but smile fondly at it. 

"Still... I must thank you for all the kindness you've shown tonight." Her gaze lands on the flowers she'd picked earlier. Maybe...

She takes the delicate stems, and skilled hands weave together a fragile crown. Berkut watches on, curiosity gleaming on his visage. An idle part of her wonders if he's made one of these before… or if he’s ever seen one 

Stem by stem, she forms the flower crown, and on tiptoe, she places it on his head. It sags down, resting against his real crown. "Please accept this crown in return, my lord, despite its humble nature."

Lord Berkut reaches towards it before pausing, and changing course to take her hand. "Of course." He smiles, bowing down to kiss her hand.

“Anything for you... my empress."

**Author's Note:**

> this wasn't quite the fic i meant to write, but hey! i like it. it's soft. gentle. short and sweet.
> 
> god i love them sm,


End file.
